From the Illinois GOP…
The State Central Committee of the Illinois Republican Party amended their bylaws yesterday to resolve a long-standing issue with regard to voting open precincts in the election of State Central Committeemen.
The amendment addressed the issue of allocation of votes from precincts that do not have elected Republican Precinct Committeemen. Prior to the amendment, Republican Party County Chairmen had the ability to cast the votes of the vacant precincts however they pleased. The amendment changed this rule by mandating that upon the election of State Central Committeemen, the weighted vote of the vacant precincts “shall be allocated to each candidate based on the proportion of weighted votes they received from the elected Precinct Committeemen.”
“This amendment is good for the Party,” said Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady. “It empowers the Precinct Committeemen, who are the driving force behind grassroots activism in Republican Party.”
The amendment was drafted by the Illinois Republican County Chairman’s Association. “The County Chairmen are excited that the State Central Committee has addressed the ongoing problem on voting open precincts,” said County Chairman’s Association President Randy Pollard. “This is also another example of why SB35 (formerly SB600) is not only unnecessary – it is Democrats in Springfield attempting to hijack the Republican Party rather than allow our Central Committee to do their job as they did yesterday.”